Does anyone still use a clothesline?

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I was using a clothes line up to 9 years ago when I moved. There are a pair of steel "T" frames in the back yard of the new house and I've already purchased laundry line to thread between them.

Frankly, I miss the smell and stiffness of towels dried in the sun - also line-dried bedding. Since I kept all my line accoutrements (cloths pins, pin bag, laundry tray on wheels), it should just take me a few minutes to get back into the swing of it.
 
I have one.....

.....of these and LOVE it - allows me to hang out 3-4 loads of washing in a small space. Very well made - in Latvia! Brabantia is the brand name. It even comes with a cover to keep it clean when folded.

philcobendixduo-2018052409125802379_1.jpg
 
On my covered patio I have one

I use the clothesline in the summertime for the bedding. According to the rules of the park where we live we are not supposed to have one but a few neighbors and I have one. I use it to help lower the power bill so I can save for the winter months. I can put out 3 loads in a day and it is all dry by evening.

David
 
these are an Australian institution.

Just about everybody here has one. People who own a dryer tend to use it occasionally, for a few urgent items, not a whole load. I live in a very rainy area (it is rainforest...) but don't own a dryer.

we have 3 methods to dry:

1. an outdoor clothes line, image below.
2. 5 lines strung up in our greenhouse - still gives reasonable drying in damp weather.
3. clothes horses in the house, for final drying off.

The "Hills Hoist" was invented in Australia, and was manufactured not far from where I grew up. They have a crank handle so you can lower it to hang up the clothes, then wind them up higher to catch the breeze and get the clothes out of reach of mischievous dogs. they rotate in the breeze so all the clothes dry more evenly.

the photo below is the same as mine, but isn't mine.

http://www.hillshome.com.au/our-products/clotheslines/
gizmo-2018052409494007582_1.jpg
 
I have...

Exactly what Philcobendixduo has, a Brabantia “Lift-O-Matic” as they’re known here. I also have a smaller one at other end of Garden.

Here in the U.K., line drying was never not a thing, even though in Northern England/Scotland it seems to do nothing but rain!! so line drying days are limited (good news, today is lovely).

Our energy prices are some of the highest in the world (calculated off US dollars for you guys, we are the 3rd highest only coming behind Italy and Germany) so its costly to run a dryer (my $275 a month energy bill confirms this).

I REALLY should use my line more, but it’s so damn convenient to use a dryer, especially as I live in the wettest region in the U.K.
 
When I moved into the house 10 years ago I had two steel poles made and have 4 lines. I don't dry everything outside but drying my sheets outside is an absolute must. When I was growing up we hung everything outside (even though we had a dryer) except in extremely bad weather. My Mother thought it was a waste of electricity to run the dryer when the sun was shining. How times have changed.

Bob
 
I have a vintage retractable clothes line that I use almost daily (as conditions permit) for bed linens and sometimes for shirts and shorts.   I like the ability to make it disappear when entertaining outdoors or on days when the gardener comes.  New versions of this type of clothes line are available, but the cords they use aren't as thick as the vintage ones.
 
Nearly Daily,*

For most of my adult life, sometimes even at least the sheets in winter because of the smell. With practice and experience, you'll come to appreciate differences in textile textures produced by wind, sun, humidity. For example, a warm, windy, humid day makes the towels dryer-like; calm hot days make the white T-shirts starched and pressed.

For Easy Assembly: screw in hooks and green wire line from Valu, takes only minutes. The green wire is less vista-obstrusive than thick white rope, and you can leave it up.

* since retiring; before the, as the spirit moved me.

mickeyd-2018052413392106804_1.jpg
 
Duh! before "THAT" ;'D

Classic "Mundee Warshday," from the other day. My car mechanic's load: now, he's hooked, can't believe the finish and the scent. When you make a cool pile of the clothes as they come off the line--already organized and so easy to fold-- all long and flat, it looks impressive enough to wrap in brown butcher paper and pretend you're running a laundry.

mickeyd-2018052413574402423_1.jpg
 
<span style="font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;">It's comforting to know people still value their clotheslines, sort of like people canning fruits and vegetables or making their own jam. My mom had a huge line and hung up everything even though she had a very early Apex dryer (you had to light the pilot every time you used it, not with a match but with an automotive spark plug). And mickeyd...if I had a view like that I'd be hanging stuff on the line all the time. Very nice!</span>

 

<span style="font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;">PS...Clotheslines are verboten where I live but what the HOA can't see won't hurt them. Even a thick king comforter dries fast when it's 120+ degrees outside. </span>
 
Hi Derek!! Yes, I have a clothesline that I use every week. There's no shortage of hot sunny weather in south central Texas. I feel guilty using the dryer when the temps are 100 degrees. Clothes dry faster outside than they do using the dryer, March through Oct. I cut our electric bill by a solid 1/3 every month doing so, been doing this for 18 years. Have saved thousands of dollars in that amount of time, they paid for themselves the first month. I had a collapsible clothesline that kept falling so I found a local mom & pop hardware store that carried real clothesline poles, they weren't easy to find, even back then. Love, love the smell of freshly dried clothes, and don't mind the stiffness of the towels and jeans at all, in fact I prefer them....I know they're clean. Dark clothes I hang on clothes hangers and often hangg them up in the house to dry to keep from fading. Feel fortunate that I'm able to use them, it would be a different story if we lived in a cold climate. Need to install some new lines though, they can start sagging after a couple of years and need tightening. Also think hanging the clothes outside is very effective in dissipating any strong smell from detergents, more so than using a dryer, they just smell clean.

Clotheslines.....ALWAYS use them.

Barry
 
I still use one

I have a Brabantia wall mounted four side washing line that I fitted to the chimney on my flat roof.That way, the washing isn't dangling in my postage stamp size London garden but is blowing merrily on the second floor!
 
Yes

I dry well into the winter months, and even then on better days.

I especially do my bedding on the line. I prefer the fresh smell of line drying, and the ability to "Air Out" the comforters and sheets.

My dress shirts do very well on the line, with fewer wrinkles and less fuss when placing on hangers.

I don't really like my towels on the line, but will dry them, but usually toss in the dryer for a few minutes when I bring them in to soften them up a bit.

Not to say, I don't still use my dryer. but short answer, Yes! I still line dry. I can't find the clothes line that my dad used to use when setting up lines for my mother. It was an aircraft coiled steel. What I have found that works Pretty well now is the nylon clothes line. I have to replace it about every two or so years, but it isn't that expensive.

What I do when stringing the nylon line/rope. I wet the line so that it stretches. Then string it up as taunt as I can pull it. When it dries it is very tight and my heavy items don't sag. I have turn buckles on the end that can still be used to tighten the line as it ages and stretches.

Remember: It's our right to dry.
 
Yes, when I can. We have one of the umbrella style affairs, although a cheap one. We also have typical Michigan weather, and neighbors that wait until I've just finished hanging clothes to burn their garbage. Sure, the dryer is easier, but you just can't bottle that smell! Love the smell of line dried laundry!
 
In recent years, I've dried almost everything outside in summer, using a couple of clothes lines attached between the place I live and a shed. I've dried a fair amount in spring and fall, although spring and fall are less reliable. (It may only dry to "nearly dry", and need additional time hanging up inside.)

 

I like the outdoor scent like others here, and I even purposely use unscented detergent for at least some loads, such as sheets.

 

At one time, I dried year round, although in winter it was inside, using wood racks. At that time I'd dry outside simply by moving a wood rack outside. But air drying inside doesn't work well where I currently live.

 

 
 
A subject I can give a view on at last!

Perfect as the subject of my first post. Hello everyone!

On this side of the pond, certainly in the warmer months, lines are still the norm as has been said elsewhere in the thread. I have one, even though I currently live in an apartment with only a small balcony. I seldom visit a friend’s home without seeing a line full of laundry flapping in the breeze. Particularly as most of us currently have children or babies.

I’d recommend one to anybody. My whites always shine from spring to autumn, stains I see discussed here in old posts (yellowing on sheets, nappies with bile stains) just melt away in very little sunlight. A hot day and a slower spin and nature does its best. Of course, I am aware of where I live and also have a dryer, but I much prefer drying outside. Even in winter, if it’s clear out, it goes on the line.

Our relationship with dryers is an odd one. I think they occupy a very different position in the British psyche. They tend to almost be viewed as a slight indulgence or a guilty pleasure by some I think. Whether this relates to the cost of running the appliance or what I don’t know. I use mine gladly when needed, but I do have a hanging airer in the hall as well, so I suppose even I view the dryer as a backup.

Coming here and learning how things differ elsewhere in the world has made me actually think about my own habits, which has been very interesting!

Thrilled to have got involved at last 😊
 
I have the old conventional cast-iron clothes poles, with modern 'clothes rope' (thin plastic-covered steel wire) strung between them. I think this modern thin stuff is actually meant for re-stringing 'whirlies' (rotary airers).

I still have some of the old 'Hoselock Brand' (yes, they who made garden hoses snap-fit connectors!) storm clothes pegs, which do grip the thin clothesline well. However you cannot buy 'Hoselock' pegs anymore. Instead, there is a cheap Chinese copy - which sticks fast and breaks easily.
 
Hi Woollyaxolotyl

welcome!

"a slight indulgence or a guilty pleasure" about sums up the Aussie attitude to dryers, too. I think it should be a crime to use a dryer on a sunny day.
It will be when I become benevolent dictator.
 
When we bought our house in 1998 it had a cheap umbrella type clothesline in the yard.  It worked great until a really strong gust of wind caught it one day and snapped the pole off at ground level.  

 

<span style="text-align: left; color: #000000; text-transform: none; line-height: normal; text-indent: 0px; letter-spacing: normal; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; word-spacing: 0px; display: inline !important; white-space: normal; orphans: 2; float: none; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent;">My late friend, Leroy, sold and installed cow stalls made by Freudenthal Mfg. and I asked him if he would pick up a clothesline for us sometime when he had to pick up parts from them.  He delivered it to us about 2 weeks later.  We've had it about 14 years now.  It is U-shaped, and can be easily moved around the yard.  Ours is 20 feet long with 7 lines.  They also come in[COLOR=#b00650; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif] <span style="display: inline !important; float: none; background-color: transparent; color: #323c32; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19.5px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">10ft - 12ft - 15ft versions.[/COLOR]</span></span>

 

<span style="text-align: left; color: #000000; text-transform: none; line-height: normal; text-indent: 0px; letter-spacing: normal; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; word-spacing: 0px; display: inline !important; white-space: normal; orphans: 2; float: none; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent;">[COLOR=#b00650; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]<span style="display: inline !important; float: none; background-color: transparent; color: #323c32; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 19.5px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">The attached photo was taken 11/27/15.[/COLOR]</span></span>

http://www.freudenthalmfg.com/misc/clotheslines.php
polkanut-2018052505574205794_1.jpg
 
On the subject of pegs...

Have you ever tried the pegs I’ve linked to, Rolls_rapide?

They are made in Italy on equipment which is now some 50 years old. Killer grip but not too bad for marks, never rust, fantastic. They are the only ones I’ve had that tolerate drying 3 floors up in an Atlantic wind! The vendor is lovely and she does so well out of them that she told me if the company ever ceased production, she’d buy out the equipment and bring it over. We’re about to move and will have a garden with a big rotary (not a Hills but maybe one day), so I’ll shortly be buying more.

Thanks for the welcome, gizmo. Sounds like British and Australian drying habits are very similar- but taken as a whole I expect Australians get a few more good drying days, although not necessarily where you are by the sound of it! I do find it often doesn’t rain as much as you think it does when you need it to be dry.

http://www.exquisitescotland.com/merchandise/k-pegs/
 
We have an umbrella type clothesline that we used to use whenever the weather was good. But I have very severe allergies and we have LOTS of pollen producing trees all around us. I found that my allergies were aggravated by hanging the laundry out and my Allergy doctor suggested that I stop hanging the laundry out. I did and my allergies got better, so no can do anymore.

But I do miss the smell of laundry hung outside. When I was a small child, before we got our first dryer in 1955 we had a large, unfinished basement and there were clothslines strung up that Mom used when the weather wasn’t good enough for hanging the laundry outside.

And I can still see my Mom throwing area rugs over the clothes line outside when she did Spring cleaning and beating the rugs with a broom and the dust flying from them. I wonder if anyone beats rugs anymore?

Eddie
 
I don't currently have one, but my last one was of the retractable type. The reel was mounted on the back of the house, and I had a hook on a tree in the backyard. I won't be able to do this in the future unless I install a pole, as the tree fell last year.

Several of my older neighbors still use theirs when weather permits.
 
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